The holiday season is a time to make merry, reconnect with family and friends, and find something to be grateful for. But if you’re feeling like the holidays actually stress you out more than other parts of the year, you aren’t alone. With tight budgets that flex to handle dinners,…
Q: This is probably more common than I realize, but some of my family members have different political views from me. The fact that we disagree isn’t so much of an issue for me, but if at any point I share my beliefs and viewpoints, it feels like I’m instantly…
This is not a fun topic to write about. Parent-child breakups are painful for everyone involved: for the adult children who feel torn between filial duty and self-protection; for the toxic parents who can’t understand what they did wrong; and even for the children those parents once were, who were…
For every Taylor Swift flourishing artistically during the pandemic, there are millions of suffering and burnt-out people who aren’t composing songs or painting portraits or writing novels. What have they been doing instead? Well, if they’re anything like me, they’ve been drowning in domestic labor, work, anxiety, childcare, and other…
There seems to be this idea floating around that on your last day of work or school before the holidays you tear off your business casual wear to reveal the snowflake flannel pajamas underneath, grab an overflowing mug of eggnog, and seamlessly launch winter vacation. At least this is my…
The holidays are often portrayed as a time of happiness surrounded by family and friends, but for some it can be a more difficult time. Especially in times of pandemic, when social distancing may cause physical separation, communication can become more strained causing feelings of isolation, loneliness and guilt. Within…
Today, new moms understand that they may experience “the baby blues” and maybe even postpartum depression. These are two very real possibilities that they prepare for. But there’s another common condition that new moms develop after having a baby that is less talked about: postpartum anxiety. While it’s normal to…
Every year on September 16, we celebrate National Working Parents Day. This year, our celebration is a little different, as the majority of working parents are either 1) adapting to working from home while their kids adapt to learning from home or 2) juggling the tricky (and stressful) balance that…
Quick Summary A new study “A prefrontal-paraventricular thalamus circuit requires juvenile social experience to regulate adult sociability in mice” suggests that social isolation in childhood has a harmful impact on adult brain functioning and more specifically, in an area of the brain that’s responsible for regulating social behavior. In addition…
Imagine you’re a young mom with two kids under the age of 10. You feel like you’ve finally managed to balance all of your responsibilities when you receive some hard news: your grandmother’s health is deteriorating, and she can no longer live on her own. Your once-independent grandma can’t do…
Prior to the COVID-19 outbreak, families looked forward to stepping away from work and other responsibilities to spend quality time with one another. Maybe they would go to the movies, take a trip to an amusement park, or go out to dinner and get ice cream on the way home….
Family conflict and stress is, well, distressing. While it’s normal to fight with our loved ones—especially the family members we see and talk to regularly—withstanding and working through these conflicts is far from easy. Not to mention that the impact of stress on families is damaging, both in the short…
